INTERPLAY: An Evening of Ekphrastic Dance

Six local choreographers converge to create movement poetry in a vivid portrayal of modern art. View original works from diverse perspectives and watch art literally come to life! December 7 and 8.

Choreographers:

Mary-Elizabeth Ruthann Fenn is a mover from Wisconsin. Her choreography has a detailed quirkiness to each story, sometimes she thinks of her pieces as Polly Pockets, a tiny detailed world. She loves going out and dancing like a weirdo, listening to podcasts and reading about creativity and the moon. You can often find Mary-Elizabeth talking with her hands and saying “Ok, cool!”, as well as hanging out with her really cool human husband and loving dogs, Fritz and Cody.

Anne Howard is a unique mover with an extravagant imagination who draws upon eclectic observations. Anne danced for Alyssa Lee Wilmot’s ‘group a dance’, apprenticed with Inlet Dance Theatre and Elu Dance Company, and studied with Pig Iron Theatre Company. Anne has created original work for Cleveland Public Theatre and Maelstrom Collaborative Arts. Her journey has fostered a natural proclivity to humor and fun, and she loves making you laugh.

Akane Little is a freelance dancer and choreographer who makes work about non-linear time, systemic and interpersonal violences, queernes, and intimacy. A Mississippi-raised Ohio transplant, they are based in Cleveland and dance with the Cleveland Dance Project. Recent projects includemukou // home, a duet contemplating Japanese diaspora with Heather Sakai at the FireFish Festival in Lorain, OH; and Aerobics Class, exploring habitual violence and intimacy as resilience in US society with original music by Richmond-based Hayden Arp, performed at TheatreLAB in Richmond, VA. They can be followed on Instagram at @akane.little.

Samuel McIntosh is a dancer and choreographer specializing in the genre of Popping and Animation. He competes in New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles and Montreal. Samuel holds a degree in arts administration from Baldwin Wallace University. In 2016, he received the Arts Administration Fellowship from the Community Partnership for Arts and Culture in Cleveland, Ohio. He currently works at the historic Karamu House and as an Adjunct Hip-Hop Dance Instructor at Kent State University.

Erin Pennebaker graduated with a BFA in Modern Dance from Belhaven University in Jackson, MS in 2011. She moved to Cleveland, OH in 2012 to continue her dance career as an Apprentice with Inlet Dance Theatre, where she was promoted to Company Member in 2014. Dancing with Inlet Dance Theatre has allowed Erin to teach and perform in events throughout the region including Jacob’s Pillow Inside Out Series in Beckett, MA.

Robert Rubama is a native of Virginia Beach, VA. He is a graduate of George Mason University with a BFA in Dance. Robert has had the opportunity to perform works by Andrea Miller, Donald Byrd, Mark Morris, Soon Ho Park, Nick Pupillo, Ivan Perez, and Yin Yue. He has presented work in New York City and Washington D.C. Robert is currently in his first season as a dancer with GroundWorks Dance Theater.